Reinforced shorts



J y 22, 8 E. E. STONE 111 2,843,852

REINFORCED SHORTS Filed Dec. 12, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIGZ.

EUGENE STONE-1,131 W ATTYS.

Q INVENTOR:

y 1958 E. E. STONE 111 2,843,852

REINFORCED SHORTS Filed Dec. 12, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG! FIGJO.

FIGS.

EUGENE STONE,1]I BY WA- ATTYS.

INVENTOR.

United States Patent REINFORCED SHORTS Eugene E. Stone III, Greenville, S. C., assignor to Stone Manufacturing Company, Greenville, S. C., a corporation of South Carolina Application December 12, 1955, Serial No. 552,326

1 Claim. (Cl. 2--225) The present invention relates to undergarments, and more particularly to mens shorts which are reinforced.

It is well known that the conventional shorts of the boxer, yoke front, elastic side, and similar types are subject to the greatest failure in the crotch area. To prolong the life of the short, it has been proposed to sew a lining in the crotch area to protect this area of the short from contact with the body acids. This expedient has not been entirely satisfactory since the lining material itself becomes impregnated with the body acids, and, in turn, allows the short material to be adversely affected. In addition, the assembly of the lining to the short involves additional sewing operations which add to the expense of the short to a degree not commensurate with the prolonged life afforded by the lining. In addition, the conventional lining material adds substantial bulk to the crotch area of the short which makes the short somewhat uncomfortable in normal use.

With the foregoing in mind, a primary object of the present'invention is to provide a moisture resistant reinforcement for shorts which is confined to the area which is most subject to deterioration.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a reinforced short which is readily assembled.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a reinforced short of simple construction which is fully effective in use.

All of the objects of the invention and the various features and details of the construction and assembly thereof are more fully set forth hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a View of a short made in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary exterior view showing the reinforcement of the short;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but showing the interior of the short;

Figs. 4 to 7 show the steps in the assembly of a reinforcing patch to one portion of the blank of the short; and,

Figs. 8 to 11 are views similar to Figs. 4 to 7 showing the assembly of a reinforcing patch to the opposite portion of the blank.

As shown in Fig. 1, the short comprises a trunk portion 10 having a pair of leg portions 11 and 12 respectively. The short is formed from a blank having a pair of opposed front and side panels 14 and 15 respectively and a back section 16. The sections 14 and 15 are connected by a crotch seam 22 adjacent their lower extremities along marginal edge portions indicated at 17 and 18 respectively. The sections 14 and 15 are connected by an inseam 23 to the back section 16 along edges 19 and 20 respectively. The greatest strain or weakness in the conventional short is the crotch seam 22 and in the central portion of the inseam 23.

In accordance with the present invention, a reinforcement in the form of reinforcing patches is provided for the crotch seam 22 and the central portion of the inj 2,843,852 Patented July 22, 1958 seam 23. Each of the patches is secured to one of the front panel sections 14 and 15 along the full length of the marginal portions 17 and 18 and extend closely adjacent the marginal portions 19 and 20 for only a portion of the length of the latter. Thus, the patch is confined to the immediate area where the conventional short fails.

The panel section 14 is provided with a patch 24 and the panel section 15 is provided with a patch 25. In the preferred form of the invention, the patches are of heavier construction than the construction of the fabric in the blank and are coated on one face with a heat: sensitive adhesive, as indicated by the stippling in Fig. 2. If the patch is to be sewn in place, the adhesive may be omitted. The opposite face of the blank is im-. pregnated with a moisture resistant sizing material which presents a firm backing for the adhesive-coated face, and prolongs the life of the patch.

In the assembly of the garment, the patches 24 and 25 are mounted on their associated blanks .14 and 15 is adapted to be enclosed in the fly flap 27 of the short,

and a leg portion 29 which extends along the marginal portion of the short. As shown in Figs. 5 to 7 inclusive,

the construction of thepatch 24 affords folding .of the fly flap 27 under and back upon itself as indicated to provide several layers of. cloth at the bottom of the flyl which enclose the edge of the tab portion 28 of the patch 24. By reason of the cut extending beyond the intersection of the edge 17, the edge may be folded over along the foldline indicated at 31.

In the assembly of the garment, the patch 24 is secured in place; the fly flap 27 is folded along the foldlines 32, 33, and 34; and at the same time, the marginal edge 17 is folded along the line 31. If desired, the folded portion of the panel section 14 may be stitched in place prior to the assembly of the blank with the remaining portions of the blank.

The reinforcing patch 25 is assembled to the blank portion 15 in a somewhat similar manner. It is noted that the panel section 15 is provided with a fly flap 36 which terminates at its lower extremity in a diagonally extending cut 37 which extends beyond its junction with the edge portion 18. The patch 25 is provided with a fly tab portion 38 which is adapted to be enveloped in the fly flap 36, and a leg portion 39 which extends along the marginal portion 18 of the blank 15. The patch 25 is preferably provided with a heat-settable cement as indicated at 2511 in Fig. 2 so that it may be cemented to the blank section 15 by a simple heat-pressing operation. As shown in Fig. 9, the patch is positioned on the blank section 15 adjacent the terminus of the cut 37. In this manner, the marginal portion 18 of the blank section 15 may be folded over the leg portion 39 of the blank, for example, along the foldline indicated at 40, and the fly flap 36 may be folded along the line 41, 42, and 43 to enclose the fly portion 38 of the patch 25.

The various blank sections are then assembled together, for example by the crotch seam 22 and the inseam 23, extra reinforcement for the base of the fly being provided by the zig Zag line of stitches indicated at 45.

the inseam. Thus, by disposing the patches 24 and 25 so that they extend for approximately /3 the length of the edge portions 19 and 20, the patch extends for only approximately /3 the length of the leg of the garment and maintains the lower portion of the legs free from the bulk of the reinforcing patches. This construction is made possible by reason of the use of cement to join the patches to the garment since the use of cement eliminates the need for inseams about the entire periphery of the patch and therefore enables the patch to terminate short of the lower extremities of the legs of the garment.

It should be noted that the leg portions 29 and 39 of the patches 24 and 25 respectively have substantially parallel side edges so that when the patches are mounted on the front panel sections of the blank, the edges remote from the crotch seam of the short are parallel to the crotch seam to provide sufiicient reinforcement for the crotch seam, but not so great an area of patch material to substantially increase the bulk of material in the crotch. The fly flap portions 28 and 38 of the patches 24 and 25 respectively, are formed with their outer edges arcuate to blend into the remote edges of the leg portions so that when the patches are mounted in the assembled garment, the entire area of the patch is back panel connected to said front panel sections along second marginal edge portions to form the inseams of the leg portions of said garment, the reinforcing patch cemented to each of said front panel sections over the entire area of said patch, each reinforcing patch comprising a fly portion adapted to be secured in the fly portion of the garment, and a leg portion having one edge adapted to be disposed along the crotch seam of the garment and a parallel edge disposed parallel to said crotch seam, said leg portion being of a width less than one half the length of the inseam of the garment, said patches extending the complete length of said first marginal edge portion of the front panel sections into closely adjacent relationship to said second marginal edge portions and extending along said second marginal edge portions of the front panel sections for a distance corresponding to the width of said leg portions of the patch to provide a reinforcing patch on each front panel which is confined to the crotch area of said shorts, each patch composed of fabric having a heat-settable cement covering one face for attachment to the associated front panel section, and moisture-resistant sizing material impregnating the exposed opposite face of the patch to provide a firm backing for the cement-coated face.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,116,008 Block May 3, 1938 2,262,107 Lenaghan et a1. Nov. 11, 1941 2,570,497 Senderowitz Oct. 9, 1951 2,747,193 Pulsifer May 29, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 115,965 Australia Sept. 30, 1942 

